Man's body taken from sea off Cork

THE BODY of a retired schoolteacher who drowned after his fishing boat capsized was recovered from the sea near Castletownbere in west Cork yesterday.

Pearse Lyne (66), a father of four, is the fifth person to drown in Ireland’s coastal waters this week following four incidents.

The alarm was raised at about 1.30pm when a man walking on cliffs at Garranes near the Dzogchen Beara Buddhist Retreat Centre spotted an upturned boat some 150m offshore. The Irish Coast Guard Marine Rescue Co-ordination Centre at Valentia began a search operation.

The body of Mr Lyne, a former principal of Castletownbere national school, was located at about 3pm in the water near Pulleen harbour, some 3km from Castletownbere pier. According to the Irish Coast Guard, weather conditions in the area were poor yesterday afternoon.

Castletownbere national school principal Paul Stevens said the local community was greatly shocked at Mr Lyne’s death. “He was deeply respected and a gifted teacher who had been involved in the education of generations in Castletownbere,” said Mr Stevens.

The tragedy is the second at sea off the Beara peninsula this week. John O’Leary, a 58-year-old farmer and poet, drowned off Cod’s Head on Monday night. Mr O’Leary, from Barness in Allihies, was out sailing with his son, Christopher (18), when their dinghy capsized. They clung to the upturned boat for four hours before attempting to swim ashore. The son managed to reach shore and raise the alarm. Mr O’Leary’s body was recovered early on Tuesday morning.

A funeral service took place yesterday at Rocky Island crematorium in Cork harbour.

Fishermen Michael Galvin and Noel Dickinson drowned off the Co Clare coast on Tuesday. Their fishing boat, Lady Eileen, was reported missing after failing to return home. Their funerals took place at Our Lady Star of the Sea Church in Quilty yesterday. Mr Dickinson’s funeral took place at 11am. His partner Helen O’Leary was among those who read the bidding prayers. She is due to give birth to the couple’s first child in three months’ time. His parents Larry and Mary Dickinson and his two sisters and one brother were also among the mourners.

Mr Galvin’s funeral took place at 3pm. He is survived by his wife Liz, his sons Brian and Aidan, and daughter Michelle who came back from Australia for the funeral.

Kilmurray Ibrickane parish priest Fr Pat Larkin said the whole community was bereft by the deaths of both men.

The body of Martin Burns (51) was recovered off Clare Island, Co Mayo, on Tuesday after his currach overturned. He was buried on the island yesterday.

Meanwhile, a diver was rescued on Thursday after getting into difficulty at a lake in Co Donegal.

Two men were diving at depths of up to 50m in Lough Salt when one of them, believed to be from Inishowen, got into difficulty. The other diver, understood to be Italian, raised the alarm. Mulroy Cliff and Coast Rescue Service brought the diver to the surface. He was later transferred to Craigavon hospital in Co Armagh.